/sffg/ - Science Fiction & Fantasy General

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about half-way through this, seems to cover the same themes as the last PKD I read (Eye in the Sky)

>>9706008
>last read

Some erotic fiction from /d/, unfortunately the threads have been purged from the board so I'll never find out how it ends.

It wasn't bad.

Started reading the sword of truth series, it's shit from book one page one but I feel like I need to know what's up.

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Read pic related -- "Triplanetary" by E.E. Smith -- as part of a batch of old paperbacks I picked up at a used bookstore.

I knew it was the "first" book in the Lensman series, but I didn't realize it was a prequel to the earlier-written "Galactic Patrol". Triplanetary is full of allusions and references to Galactic Patrol, as expected. Anyone interested in the Lensman books should read Galactic Patrol first.

Triplanetary gives a rundown of the origins and history of the conflict between the evil Eddorians and the good Arisians that serves as the background for the Lensman. Once the infodump is over, Triplanetary turns into a first-contact story between humans and the alien Nevians, while the evil Eddorian Gray Man attempts to bring the human race into subservience by any means necessary.

The Lensman setting is not subtle, and Smith personifies common criticisms of the genre. The Eddorians and Arisians are respectively so evil and so good as to be metaphysical forces rather than characters or species in any real sense of the words. Anything the Arisians and their allies do is good, and anything the Eddorians and their allies do is bad, and little detailed examination is made otherwise.

Smith's worship of technocratic competence makes Robert Heinlein look like Ursula Le Guin; the main characters are all hypercompetent (the protagonist, held prisoner on an alien starship, literally memorizes everything he sees so exactly he's able to have a superior human starship built based on his descriptions). The nameless mass are worthless; several cities are casually destroyed by weapons of mass destruction, with no apparent hard feelings by either side. Shit happens; it's not like a plot-relevant character died.

The Triplanetary intelligence service, under the command of the Best Dude Ever, secretly controls everything from behind the scenes. They explicitly maintain extensive dossiers on the pathetic elected leaders of obsolete national governments, which they use to control opposition and prevent the public from questioning their policies. This is portrayed not merely as normal but desirable.

Anyway, it's pretty hard to recommend except for someone interested in the history of the genre. 2/5.

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This is another of my batch of paperbacks: The Fall of Chronopolis by Barrington J. Bayley. He was apparently a somewhat prominent New Age writer and close friend of Michael Moorcock, although I'd never heard of him. I saw it and picked it up because I'd just read "City Beyond Time" by John C. Wright and wondered if I'd see any influence here.

The setting and conceit are interesting, unfortunately the narrative seems to get away from the author in a big way in the last third or quarter of the book. I've noticed this with some other old SF books: they appear constrained to a certain length, so if the author doesn't get around to making his point in time he just has to wrap everything up however it stands. The last 15 or so pages are basically a DBZ battle pulled out of the author's ass, and despite the interesting setting, the author never really explores its deeper implications; maybe he just wasn't clever enough. For gonzo time travel, I'd recommend Keith Laumer's Dinosaur Beach instead.

GRI fans: there is some edgy rape. 3/5.

>>9706034
>sword of truth
I always get this and Sword of Shannara mixed up; I've mentally marked them both as "shit fantasy series I'll never read'.

>>9705835
>Do people really not get this?

Considering all the unironic Kvothes floating out there in genre fiction, it's easy to mistake Kellhus for one at first. Most people probably write off Kellhus's early asshole moments as him being a super cool hero dude walking over all the chumps and plebs who get in his way.

It's really only in book three that it becomes glaringly obvious that Kellhus is an inhuman monster.

>>9706085
He literally abandons someone to die in one of his first chapters.
If this was less obvious than the cuckoldry to you then I suggest taking a break from 4chan.

remember: no meme

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Reading through this for a second time, you really get out as much as you want to put in with GW.

This collection seems to be underrated or at least not discussed very often, in my experience - I'm not sure why.

Anyone else enjoyed this collection?

>>9706133
Gene Wolfe's short fiction is at least as good as his novels. They just don't have the same meme-value.

>>9706008
>Those Who Hunt the Night
>Traveling with the Dead

I'm only reading this shit because I'm out of books and apparently several characters from Coldfire is directly lifted from here (like Ysidro = Gerald minus the magic and Ciani = Lydia) and the world is significantly more boring since it's essentially vampires in alt history.

These books are surprisingly on the point with references to things like Leeuwenhoek's animalcules although I must admit there are ridiculously detailed to the point of snortworthy moments when the books started referencing things like onychogryphosis and unscientific things such as cephalic indexes and Brachycephalic head shapes which clearly indicates that the author did their research in terms of what is/what is not around.

I would not exactly recommend these books, however, because the worldbuilding:plot ratio seems to be about 8 to 1 and moves very slowly. The first book is essentially a London period murder mystery with vampires and the second book starts out with espionage and tailings and and now it seems to have gone into digressions that are worthy of the Star Wars taxation meme:
>There were more than a score of corporations and investors that seemed to fit the criteria. More people than a single vampire had guessed the way the wind was blowing back in July and started transferring funds into less vulnerable forms than real estate and gold.
Also the second book is currently about muslims and what seems to be a reference to Koschei the Deathless.

>>9706075
>>9706075
Worth reading?

Just read Book of the New Sun over the last month, starting on Urth of the New Sun because I have nothing better to do.
Some things I didn't understand: was Jonas just a cyborg, or some kind of flesh stealing machine? What was the deal with Jonas being apparently ressurecte in Miles? How hard did Serverian fuck Valeria at the end of the book?

>>9706165
Read Dinosaur Beach or The End of Eternity instead.

>>9706177
I'd kind of recommened reading BotNS twice before going into Urth to catch it all but Urth will answer several of these. Particularly the nature of Jonas and a bit of elaboration on Sev's relationship with Valeria.

>>9706133
His best collection. The caveat to wolfe is "garbage in garbage out." Most people are dimwits. Wolfe isn't.

>>9706133
>and other stories and other stories

>>9706279
That's cause the collection contains the story "The Island of Doctor Death and Other Stories" and it also contains other stories than that one.

>>9706076
That's a good idea.
[Spoiler] >mfw that dickhead wrote a million books and I haven't even finished my first draft. [/spoiler]

>>9706489
>reddit

>>9706489
don't do this ever again. please delete this post right now.

>>9706279
what sound do things make when they go over your head?

Michael Swanwicks Vacuum Flowers

I thought it was interesting.

>>9706133
Its not underrated, the island of doctor death and other stories is what first rose Wolfe to prominence and paved the way for the other a doctor stories and his first go at novels

>>9706382
Its a literary joke

>>9706545
It was originally a misprint I think. Left uncorrected because it was funny.

Last thing I read was The Collected Stories of Philip K. Dick, Volume 5: We Can Remember It For You Wholesale Total Recall was more interesting than the title short story
I think Cadbury, The Beaver Who Lacked and Faith of our Fathers alone made it worth the read. But there were a couple of really good ones that activated my almonds too. Not very consistent though since it covers I think 18 years of his career.

Anything come out recently or about to come out?

>>9706592
>Total Recall was more interesting than the title short story
Most film adaptations succeed PKD's originals. Part of his appeal to filmmakers, imo.

Faith of Our Fathers is criminally underrated, an incredible story. Just look at the effort that went into the parts about detecting subversive subtexts in the essays of teenagers in occupied California.

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>>9706623
I don't know. Personally I think A Scanner Darkly kind of failed, it cut out my favorite parts of the book atleast they only spend like 5 seconds with Actor in the New Path clinic which is criminal since that was easily the best part of the book. Also missing the aspect of Actor not really recognizing himself on the camera since his brain is all fried
Still, I'd absolutely love to see a Faith of our Fathers movie.

>>9706557
That would be nonsensical.

>>9706008
>What did you last read? What did you think about it?
The Library at Mount Char
really enjoyed the twist, totally expected a happy ending but thinking back about how Father was I shouldn't have
the use of magic was good, no explicit spell usage but you had to gather ingredients, prepare to use it

>>9706049
>Read pic related -- "Triplanetary" by E.E. Smith -- as part of a batch of old paperbacks I picked up at a used bookstore.
Did the same thing a year or two ago. I still haven't come across a copy of Galactic Patrol, but am trying not to write off the series completely until I've read it. I agree with your assessment of Triplanetary, and it ended up being painfully boring to read.

>>9706098
I think people are willing to write that first one off as an extreme situation. But as it goes on, you realize that's just Kellhus being Kellhus.

>>9706689
Who is that toon and why does she want dick?

>>9706756
Magic doesn't exist. It's a myth. All these are carefully explained sciences.

Just finished Children of Hurin. God what a shit life Turin had. The curse Morgoth put upon him didn't seem that strong at first but it just kept building and building.

>>9706689
Linklater pussied out. He was willing to show how fucked up druggies are, but he wasn't willing to show how fucked up the Maoist philosophy of rehab clinics are. Same deal with not reprinting the "drug misuse is a decision, not a disease" line, which after reading the ending -- where Arctor doesn't even know who he is anymore -- and turning the page that sentence hit me like a ton of bricks.

>>9706623
>Most film adaptations succeed PKD's originals. Part of his appeal to filmmakers, imo.
I disagree that it's his appeal to filmmakers. I think it has to do more with the fact that filmmakers would like to add some sort of intelligence and clever idea to their otherwise dumb action/thriller movie. So they dive into PDK's bag of tricks sometimes successfully, but not always.

>>9706592
How much for you to read all the PKD short stories and put together a list of the one worth reading?

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>>9707195
It's on my list of things to do desu. Just need to find the other books in the series, or just get them online I suppose. But I'm also trying to pace myself since he did write quite a bit.
Since you're interested. Holy Quarrel, Strange Memories of Death, The Exit Door Leads In, Retreat Syndrome, Chains of Air, Web of Aether and to a certain extend The Pre-Persons were among my favorite from that volume.

>>9707072
I loved Glaurung the dragon in that book. His charisma and hypnotic stare reminded me of Dracula.

>>9707245
Yeah legit one of the best dragons I've seen in a fantasy. Tolkien's dragons always seem to have real personality, and I love how the most evil and terrifying thing about him wasn't the physical destruction he brought to wherever he went, but the way he could twist and manipulate those he set his will on.

>>9707195
I've read them all, volumes 1-5. I'd personally recommend the first two or three, by the end they're more like bad plot sketches for novels.

>>9706530
"Wheeeeeeee!"

Recently made my first foray into fantasy with The Hobbit followed by The Fellowship and I am enjoying it immensely.

Where should I go after LoTR? Deeper into Tolkien or start exploring other fantasy?

What is /lit/s opinion on LotR? I've lurked here for a long time but rarely see it discussed.

>>9708118
If you want to know more about the backstory of LoTR, give The Silmarillion a go.
I'm more into SF than fantasy, but i really enjoyed the Earthsea books by Ursula Le Guin, and also the original Conan the Barbarian short stories by Robert E Howard were excellent.

>>9708118
If you scroll up just a bit you can see me and another anon having a little chat about Children of Hurin, which is a story by Tolkien published posthumously by his son, who edited it from various drafts and notes his father left behind. It's a tragedy set in the First Age, thousands of years before the events in the Hobbit and LotR, which are in the Third Age. But before you read Children of Hurin it might be a good idea to crack open the Silmarillion, which is like the bible of Middle Earth that Tolkien created to explain the origins of the world and tell the complete history of the Elves. The Silmarillion was also published posthumously, similar to Children of Hurin it is a compilation of various drafts and notes he had about his constructed world. It makes you realize just how deep Middle Earth is as a setting, LotR only scratched the surface of it. He had whole epics written that were never published, songs and poems too.

LotR is one of those series that has been discussed to death. Every now and then you might get people reminiscing about it or some other part of Middle Earth lore, but in terms of interesting conversation there's really nothing to say that hasn't already been said many times.

As to where to go, there's no shortage of authors who are derivative of Tolkien if you want to follow that route, but I suspect you'll only be disappointed because if you like Tolkien I doubt you'd be satisfied with shallow imitations of his work. If you want to get into contemporary stuff (books published in the last 20 or so years) then you'd be surprised to see how much of it doesn't really reference or rely on Tolkien's ideas, he's not as relevant as you'd think in modern fantasy. I'd say the 80s was the last time Tolkienites were very prominent in the fantasy scene, and the 90s you had some last gasps but as of 2000 the scene has pretty much moved on and now gritty fantasy is in vogue. You can read more of the classic authors if you want, though.

>>9708231
Silmarillion it will be then. Thanks for all of the info. I've seen the Histories of Middle-Earth but for some reason I've always assumed they would be a bit of a disappointment but maybe I'll check them out after that.

I feel like it will be difficult to read any other fantasy after this because it won't compare to how much I'm enjoying it.

>>9708274
It depends on what you love about it. One of the big barriers to enjoying Tolkien is his old fashioned writing style, but since that's obviously not a barrier to you it might just be that you prefer that style of writing, in which case moving on to other authors might be hard since his writing style isn't that common.

Also, the Silmarillion is not a dry history, it's written in the style of an epic, like the Prose Edda. It is a series of stories about the Creation of Arda and Middle Earth as well as the coming and sundering of the Elves, and the various great deeds of the Ages of Middle Earth. There's many enthralling stories there, but it might be hard to read the whole thing cover to cover. I read it piecemeal as my interest for different parts increased. You certainly could read the entire thing cover to cover if you wanted, but you don't have to.

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I've just had this series recommended to me by a friend, is it any good?

>>9708305
Yeah I'd always heard the Silmarillion was supposed to be this long, dry, tough-to-read history but if it takes on the form of an epic then I'll absolutely enjoy it. I mainly read classical literature so I don't find the writing style a huge barrier, I actually think it's perfect as it feels damn close to reading an ancient epic despite being only a century or so old. It fascinates me that all of this mythology and lore has come from the hand and mind of a single man with a little help from his friends.

Started reading The Golden Age and I'm really enjoying it so far. Are Wright's books usually this good?

>>9708337
Tolkien was a scholar and an expert on Germanic folklore, in addition to being a professional linguist. He has scholarly translations of Beowulf as well as Sir Gawain and the Green Knight. He knew his shit, there's a reason he captures the feeling of ancient storytelling so well.

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>Perry's first meeting at Madame's chapter

Holy FUCK boys Palmer pulled the wool over all three of my eyes then date-raped my retinas holy FUCK

>>9708498
i'm a couple chapters ahead & shit goes tits up even further

>>9708527
>JEDD Mason talking to Tully at the senate
HOLY FUCK

>>9708337
In The Silmarillion, Tolkien crams more epic tragic-heroism into single paragraphs than many other authors manage in their entire canon.

Just read The First Law trilogy and the standalone novels from Joe Abercrombie, can some kind anons recommend some more novels similar to these?

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>>9708827
>JEDD Mason talking to Tully at the senate

>>9708405
The short answer is no, the longer answer is that he's kind of uneven but always has great concepts. His main flaws are long-windedness and excessive sentimentality; IIRC you catch a whiff of this in the third Golden Age book but it infests some of his lesser works.

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>Settling Accounts
>My boy Robert Taft gets killed in a mormon suicide bombing
Its just not fair lads

>>9708331
>same anon from a few weeks ago that gave us an review with the same "unamed.jpg" is pretending like he never read it

>>9708827
>>9708928
>>9708527
>>9708498
>samefagging so hard

>>9708498
If you just take the time to sit down and write out a short paragraph or two about why you like the book instead of samefagging shitposts you'd be a more effective shill, and with the time limit between posts it would probably be faster.

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What does /sffg/ think of pic related?

>>9709250
I hardly even come to /lit/ you fucking faggot. It's almost as if the other guy pulled the same picture off the front page of Google, what a surprise.

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>>9709250
thanks detective anon

>>9709387
I dunno man

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it doesn't matter if I read The Once and Future King before/after The Lord of the Rings, right? i can read all this fantasy in any order?

or does it borrow/reference it or something? further, the same goes for everything Tolkien inspired, no? so i can read Malazan Book of the Fallen alongside LotR or before it or after it....or should i just read LotR first because it inspired the entire genre?

also: for books inspired by/about King Arthur, the same question: should i read The Death of King Arthur before Idylls of the King, or should i just read it in whatever order i want? i was going to read Tennsyon's story before the famous Malory one. i have a very basic, casual understanding of King Arthur, his knights and the round table (Sir Gawain, Lancelot) and Merlin and all that. further, the same goes for T.H. White's stories...or should i read the previous King Arthur stories before Tennyson's and White's for "foundation"

i know this is an autistic question but where do you think we are

>>9709429
You're overthinking it. The only 100% solid piece of advice I can give you is 'Don't read Malazan'.

>>9709484
Kek, why not? I see it get sucked off absolutely everywhere and only LotR and The Book of the New Sun held higher than it.

So apparently the consult has secured total victory by the end of TUC

>>9709503
That's because plebs are everywhere. It's a soap opera with swordfights and autism.

>>9709544
I hear how epic it is though and I love epic fantasy.

What would you say is a better epic fantasy than it?

>>9709896
Define 'epic fantasy' for me. If you just want something that's long as fuck and will occupy loads of your time I suppose it's fine enough.

>>9709922
Lots of characters from various factions/lands, big plot (whole world is involved). Preferably political intrigue. Like A Song of Ice and Fire.

>>9709939
it's about as epic as it's possible to be

What's the best edition of man in the high castle?

>>9709939
Sounds like you're the type that might enjoy Malazan then. A recommendation before you begin though, consider taking a large dose of PCP and then murdering your entire extended family and then yourself.

Finished Fall of Hyperion and enjoyed it except almost laughing at one point due to the author's Keat fanboying.

Spoilers

Only thing that bothered me was the Jewish professors rationalization of giving his daughter to the Shrike. It just seemed like Jewish pilpul, I mean the daughter would have died or been put on the tree if Keats hadn't come along.

I read an opinion in a review on someone's blog that the inherent nihilism of the Three Body Problem series's approach to interstellar civilization is a product of an atheist society like China's, which a writer from a Judeo-Christian influenced culture would have trouble producing. Is there any validity to this hypothesis? Surely there have been Westerners who wrote works with similar themes.

Below is the passage where he asserts this claim.

>I find Death’s End, and the series in general,mostfascinating, though, as a product of atheism. Not just a work influenced by atheism, or the product of an atheist (I have no idea if Cixin Liu is or isn’t), but a work that is the product of anatheistic society. And not just in the more direct ways it addresses religion (“The discovery of the dark forest state of the universe was a giant blow to most major religions, especially Christianity”). Or even Cheng Xin repeatedly playing the role of either Eve or Messiah (“I want to tell all those who believe in God that I am not the Chosen One. I also want to tell all the atheists that I am not a history-maker. I am but an ordinary person.”)

>I distinguish between a work written by an atheist and the product of an atheistic society because works written by Western atheists, especially American atheists, are still working from essentially a Judeo-Christian perspective. Even if they are reacting against it, their work can still be defined in relation to it. The typical nihilism inmodern storytelling, then, is an act of rebellion that we can try to rationalize away—for there to be a rebellion, there must be a dominant order. The nihilism of Death’s End, on the other hand, is pervasive, and thusterrifying. Other books are dark in a way that makes you happy you can set them aside and return to normal life after you’re done reading. The darkness of Death’s End is fundamental, and reaches beyond the four corners of the book. The Trisolaran threat, the threat of a Dark Forest strike, the mindboggling timescale, space itself, all serve to reinforce that underlying nihilism. After all, is there anything more frightening than space to the atheist? They look up and see not the glory of God’s creation but instead an infinite emptiness creating ever more oppressive loneliness. Liu returns to it, again and again.

Ubik

>>9710200
Ubik

>>9710201

Try "The Legend of Randidly Ghosthound"

Not really sci-fi, but it's modern. However, it's super top tier.

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Feeling those threads growing a little stale and wilted? Maybe those discussions aren't going anywhere or are lacking energy. Fear not! Ubik is scientifically proven to reinvigorate any 4chan thread and will keep it away from the bump limit! Safe when applied as directed.

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Any books that have recently concluded? So tired of seeing 1-2 books out of 6.

>>9710276
Where's there's tears there's hope.

>>9709337
These are hype-posters, not shilling

>>9710220
>>9710207
>>9710200
Ubik or ubik?
http://vocaroo.com/i/s0oCV22M7t2U

Why is Ubik a meme of all of Cock's work? It's one of the most 'Twilight Zone'-tier things he ever wrote. Cheap twists and the 'and then he woke up again and found that the last three waking ups were just additional layers of dreams' type hackery that makes so much of his writing boring.

>>9706008
Finished my read of Lord of Chaos by RJ and the Phoenix on the Sword by Howard

LoC is a book I always struggle to get through, even though I love the start and the finish. For some reason I always find it harder to get through than the later books, despite their slower pace. I imagine it's because it's the first book where the pace noticeably slows. Still love it though.

PotS was my first foray into Conan, and it was awesome. Really does make me wish for longer novels

>>9710366
Ubik

>>9710366
well it's spelt oo-bick
but from ubiquitous it would be eu-bick

>>9710095
>He doesn't know how to have fun
Where do you think we are. Sometimes you just want a male soap opera with swords.

What would you recommend me in it's stead, O enlightened one? Lemme guess, LotR. Yeah everyone knows it's a masterpiece, friend.

>>9710509
The Worm Ouroboros

>See some interesting series
>Womameme author
God fucking damn it, why does this keep happening

Kobolds in fiction as main characters?

Just finished The Three Body problem and it was an excellent read. Ultimately a couple of interesting explorations of concept, forays into ethical dilemmas of new species existence for a layman, would read again.

I need to find The Dark Forest.

>>9710276
Bakker will finish as soon as The Unholy Consult comes out.

>>9710565
Enjoy being retarded.

>>9710276
Divine Cities

>>9710665
Buddy the ride only gets wilder

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...wow

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>>9710770
well do go on

>>9708498
>Character is called sniper
>Ends up sniping somone
such foreshadowing

What are you guys reading atm?
I just finished slope, SLOPE, SLOPE!!

So, fellas, I know that Will Wight is anime, but is he good or bad anime?

do you fags all read the same meme shit like Bakke/r/atheist and Gene Wolfe? damn, expand your horizons.

13 HOURS REMAIN

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>>9710796
Read and find out.

>>9710834
Then shill your books

>>9710200
Ubik

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>>9710834
I'm sorry Mr. Redshit, but Bakker is very much sffg. His GRI and posting in this general proves that. Even Wolfe has his share of GRI and granny fucking.

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I'm looking for some compilation books of sci-fi short stories, are there any good ones?

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>>9710770
Nah. That's nothing. The king of WOW's is this.

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A Fire Upon the Deep
or
A Deepness in the Sky
?

>>9711169
How about: Fire Upon the deepness between her thighs.

There are far too few epic fantasy series

>>9711169
A Fire Upon the Deep definitely. Great book with one of the most interesting, best realized and genuinely 'alien' alien concepts around.

A deepness in the Sky is worth reading aswell, but its more due to characters and the usual drama, it doesnt really offer anything extraordinary and the aliens are psychologically way too human and uninteresting in comparison.

>>9711158
I think Stephen King had something for that, go look up his bibliography for it

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>>9708498
>Ada Palmer is a pseudonym for Amanda Palmer, Neal Gaiman's wife >>9711169

>>9711177
>Fire Upon the deepness between her thighs.
Nice meme

>>9710765
Good.

>>9711169
>>9711505
>no eyebrows
would any of you fuck Gaiman's Wife?
she looks nasty

>What did you last read? What did you think about it?
Absolution Gap
Breddy gud, very all right way to end a trilogy.
>tfw Revelation Space is basically Carl Sagan's nightmare

>>9711436
>and the aliens are psychologically way too human and uninteresting in comparison
This is pretty much the only problem I have with the book.
Aside from this, it's interesting that nowhere in the book is the fundamental law that makes the setting interesting mentioned.

>>9706008
I'm looking for something that is a bit more traditional and hopeful, something that doesn't poke fun at heroism or morality, but also doesn't feel extremely dated or cheesy.

Any suggestions?

>>9711820
"Hopeful" might not be the word but I've been recommending Alastair Reynolds to everyone I meet for a month or two now. There's an underlying moral arc in the Revelation Space trilogy that lends it the sense of gravitas missing from stuff like Iain M. Banks (not that there's something wrong with Banks' super luxury space autocommunism, it's just that not much is really at stake in most Culture books or The Algebraist; Banks doesn't do redemption very well, but the search for salvation from sin is a major thematic and stylistic force in Reynolds, despite his apparent atheism and Sagan-cultist status). The story has something like a happy ending if you make it to the end of the 3rd book, too. Chasm City might work, too, although the narrator is significantly edgier than almost anyone in the RS trilogy.
Most of Asimov's stories in I, Robot have aged well.
The Expanse might work, too, but sometimes the dialogue reads like something that could be straight out of Archer.

>go on goodreads
>almost all the popular authors are "goodreads authors"
>wannabe sffg authors shit on goodreads constantly when it gives you free exposure to millions upon million
>you can self publish and still be a goodreads author
>still shit on goodreads because they are better than them
>still not published
>still don't have any readers

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>Mieville shows no sign of returning to Bas Lag
Just fuck my shit up senpai

Why can't I not shitpost?

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I just finished this and I keep thinking about it. Some of the prose, especially in the story, is just incredible.

>>9712170
IN THE FUCKING TREES

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I want to share an example >>9712170

"My father had his own library, now in my possession; but we were forbidden to go there. I have a dim memory of standing - at how early an age I cannot say - before that huge carved door. Of seeing it swing back, and the crippled monkey on my father's shoulder pressing itself against his hawk face, with the black scarf and scarlet dressing gown beneath and the rows and rows of shabby books and notebooks behind them, and the sick-sweet smell of formaldehyde coming from the laboratory beyond the sliding mirror."

>>9712185
???

>>9711169
A fire upon the deep is overrated
The human characters suck and the setting is a badly realised less fantasy Star Wars
The only good chapters are good, it's purely "Earth animals as aliens" with little skill around it, beyond one novel concept (Packmindedness) which is rapidly broken down to thinly-disguised historical fiction
Writin and dialogue is passable.
It's not exactly a bad book and isn't exactly flawed, but I think it's recommended too much.

Then again, yet to a read a book doing the Star Wars setting well so maybe just enjoy it

>>9712241
>The only good chapters are good
Fumbled this, should read "Only the alien world chapters are good"

>>9712146
how were his recent offerings anyway?

>>9712250
>offerings
>not cutting your shadow from your body using a soul blade and using it as a weapon
It's like you don't know about sacrifice.

>>9712241

A fire upon the deep literally had a dark evil storm cloud as a villain and a fantasy macguffin resolution.

It was literally a fantasy novel.

Kelmomas gets put in the sarcophagus (which is what *retroactively* disabled the WLW
Kellhus at some point cut off his own head and replaced it with Ajokli's
Kelmomas disabled Ajokli's protection over Kellhus, Kellhus gets salted by a skin spy disguised as Esmenet
Four Dunyain have taken over the consult
Book ends with Cnaiur charging into the no god's whirlwind and Akka and Mimara trapped inside Golgotterath

>>9712146
He isn't good so it doesn't matter.
>>9712241
>>9712314
Oh look, it's a pair of retards who think that anything that isn't autistic hard SF is 'fantasy'

There was this fantasy book I was really interested in reading I found here but forgot the title.

It was about orcs traveling to reclaim their stolen brother and there were different factions. Something about the cycle starting over and the orcs wanting power.


Vague, I know

>>9712339

F a n t a s y

>>9712360
I don't understand your point.

>>9712339
I didn't think it was fantasy, I just didn't like it
I mean from a sf v f mindset I guess I disliked how the entire zones of thought idea was kind of ignored, while it had a lot more potential

>>9712363

A Fire Upon the Deep was a fantasy novel

>>9712369
I still don't understand the point.

>>9712367

zones of thought was a dumb gimmick.

In fact I'm pretty sure I've read a fantasy novel where there were fucking "zones of magic" (same thing really).

>>9712372

Why won't you admit Fire was a fantasy novel? There's nothing wrong with enjoying one of Vinge's fantasy novels.

>>971237I4
Idk the partioning of the Milky Way into areas of intelligence was neat
There were some really cool paragraphs about inter-zone interactions, like when the God like mega AI visited the massive city (forget name)
As handling of omniscient AI goes, those chapters were ok

>>9711158
Asimov's The Complete Robot
Engineering Infinity

Let me try to describe the worldbuilding in some of my favorite worlds.

Westeros (A Song of Ice and Fire)
GRRM comes over to your house with a LEGO set, one of those big architectural ones with like 4,000 pieces. He starts assembling it in front of you. Man, you think, this is just gorgeous. I mean you've seen similar sets before but the detail on this one is incredible. Everything is just in its right place. The more you look at it the more you find to appreciate. As he's working on the roof he gets bored and goes off for a nap, taking the instruction booklet with him. While waiting you speculate fiercely as to how the rest of the pieces might be assembled.

Roshar (Stormlight Archive)
Brandon Sanderson comes over to your house with his arms full of LEGO boxes stacked higher than his head. "Check this out," he says, and starts assembling each of them, bit by bit. Is that... a turtle the size of an island? And some sort of... crab cow thing? What's up with that girl's eyebrows? You've never seen these LEGO sets before in your life. Where did he get these? You start to realize that this guy is constructing one of the wildest, most imaginative playsets you've ever seen. That's when he leans over and says to you conspiratorially, "Actually, I've got six more playsets just as big back at my place. One day I'm gonna put em all together, I think."

Malazan
Steven Erikson comes over to your house with the back of his pickup loaded full of LEGO sets. You watch in horror as one by one he grabs each box, walks into your house, and upends them all over your hardwood floors. Then he kicks the pieces together with his feet. "Good fucking luck," he says, and leaves. As you try to sort through things eventually you find some pages of an instruction booklet, but actually it's just a weird handdrawn copy of the actual instructions and it seems super old so who knows if it's legit or just a lie. With the help of some friends you start putting something together that you think might be correct. Actually, you think, this is a bit more rewarding than just watching someone else put it together. Your floor is still covered with loose pieces but you start to think you could build just about anything here.

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>>9712492
Yes, we know that's from Reddit, a place I have an ambivalent relationship with. I can't exactly put my finger on why this sort of thing makes me cringe. I think it's the idea of a person writing about a topic, usually in a glib and facile way, for the approval of strangers. It seems to me that Reddit's culture discourages inauthenticity, because it encourages the individual to say what they think others would like to hear, rather than what they really think about a topic. And yet I browse it willingly, it's not all bad.

But on the topic of worldbuilding, Jack Vance is good at doing it in a compact way.

>>9712492
>Reddit the Post
Each of these descriptions could've been said in one sentence

>>9712492
That's some shitty worldbuilding

>>9712492
>GRRM
"Her cunt was the world"
>Sanderson
"Lift summoned her awesomeness"

>>9710150
What he describes is a textbook example of cosmic horror, a western literary tradition that predates China's communist revolution. Consider works like The Colour Out of Space, Alien, or Blindsight. Instead of finding god in the heavens (e.g. Christianity) or an uplifting mission (e.g. Star Trek), mankind only find a rational, indifferent universe where the old problem of survival is magnified to a scale that renders individual human life (or even all human existence) terrifyingly insignificant.

He seems enamored with the narrative that the book is a product of an inscrutable oriental culture instead of an imaginative author.

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>>9712492
You really like legos huh?

>>9712492
This entire summary just felt forced.

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>>9712492
>someone thought typing all that bullshit was incredibly smart

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Is it economically feasible to be a fantasy author who isn't trying to be the next big thing? I write, but I haven't given much consideration into whatever kind of future my works might have. I don't know how sustainable my writing can be five years down the line if I'm still stuck in the same, soul-sucking job.

>>9711100
Okay, I've seen 'Prince of Thorns' on a few of these rec things, and I can't imagine why. Sure, there are ironic shit recs, but even the worst of them is better than that fucking book! That motherfucker is the most unlikeable, mary-sue shitbag protagonist I've ever seen. It's not just edgy, it's unbelievably stupid, irrational, and lowbrow. Fucking Sword of Truth is solid gold in comparison. That's right, I'd rather read an ENTIRE FUCKING BOOK about three dipshit peasants whose only relevance to the plot is getting merked by the actual MC at the end of the book in five seconds than the "Prince of Thorns"!

If that's an actual rec kill yourself, and if it's an ironic rec you should be thrown in prison for recklessly endangering the sanity of whatever poor fool actually tries to read that shit!

What famtasy book series/franchise has the deepest lore?

>>9711158

I've got the Vandermeers' collection "The Big Book of Science Fiction." Despite the pleb title, it's over 1100 pages and covers a lot of ground. Can be a good way to test out different authors and subgenres.

Though honestly, just find a quality used bookstore near you and scan their collection. You can find dozens of themed anthologies, plus plenty of "Year's Best" collections for cheap.

>>9712810
It's not economically feasible, but if you like writing enough, you'll do it anyway. You would arrange your life and choices so that you have a job that pays, without it crushing your ability to create and be imaginative. You would also make sure you don't fall into the domestic traps that inhabit creativity, by choosing a partner who will let you write. If you're single minded, you can arrange your life so that you can write fiction that won't make any money, but satisfies yourself.

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>>9710201
Caves of Qud, the Book of the New Sun rogue-like

>>9712830
Solar Cycle

I need your best heroic fantasy recommendations

>>9711844
What is happy ending about solving one problem only for an even more horrible unsolvable problem to crop up.?

>>9712810
Is this porn?

>>9712911
Does it though? The lore in solar cycle is very intricate and clever and fascinating but is it really that expansive? Depth of lore generally refers to volume more than anything else

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Is it any good?

>>9713003
No, it's Altered Carbon, it literally says so on the cover

>>9713007
founny anoun

>>9711158

Welcome to the Monkey House by Vonnegut

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>>9712186
Did someone say... libraries?

>>9713064
seconded. my favorite was harrison bergeron.

>>9713003
I thought so 10 years ago. Not sure I'd be so positive if I were to re-read it now.

>>9712992
If raw volume is enough to interest you why don't you just start reading one of those 2 million words long and counting Super Smash Brothers fan-fictions? When people ask for things like this I never know what to say. It sounds more like you're looking for a fictional history-book than a work of fiction. Why not just read The Greeks? They have a mountain of lore, and it'll actually improve rather than contribute to the decay of your higher brain functions.

>>9712774
You could put 4chan and "constructive conversations that are archived in any meaningful way"... At least on reddit people are likely to respond.

>>9710150
China isn't atheist. They're some of the biggest believers in mystical and spiritual bullshit, from TCM to dietetics to lucky numbers.

Just finished Nightside of the Long Sun. Very pleasantly surprised. I'd been led to expect some kind of steep decline in quality following Book of the New Sun and Urth but it was very good. Silk is a very nice change of pace after Severian and the things he tries to deal with are very interesting in their own way.

>>9713243
He's talking about silmarillion style world building you autist

>>9706133
>now with 20% more STORIES

>>9713508
Give one example of Silmarillion style world building that isn't the Silmarillion.

Do you guys like Stephen Baxter?

I finished the Manifold series recently and thoroughly enjoyed it.

>>9713543
Yeah - I only read the first Manifold, but also Vacuum Diagrams and Time Ships. (Is that an actual trilogy, or like three possible versions of the Fermi Paradox story?)

So this is only semi-sffg related, but I was wondering what people thought of China Mieville's book on the Russian Revolution. I've never been a particular fan of his, something about his prose turns me off, but I'm interested in the subject matter, and I was curious how it compared to the rest of his oeuvre.

>>9713567
I haven't got round to it yet, but saw a blogger I somewhat trust raving about it recently, and I've liked his recent output in general.

>>9713210
>Did someone say... libraries?

Wolfe actually put Borges in the Book of the New Sun as Ultan, the master librarian who goes blind

>>9713518
The work of that superautist that got exposed after he died. It was some massive lifelong work about shota faeries going on adventures and dying and fucking and stuff. I forget the name.

I've got something similar going and I'm almost certain it's going to end the same way because there's no way I'm ever getting published.

>>9713647
In the Realms of the Unreal, by Henry Darger.

>>9713656
Ah yes, that was it. Lolis instead of shotas, I see.

>>9713660
>mon visage quand

TUC here, lads.

>>9706008
>Daughter of the empire is in selected books
Is this bait?
I tried it and it was 2/10 weabshit

>>9713384
>At least on reddit people are likely to respond.
Your measurement of meaningful conversation is whether or not some other nigga will give you a handjob?

>>9713384
I'll take the shitposting over enforced conformity/getting banned for having a different opinion

>>9713812

where?

>>9713243
Why do you think 2 million words is a lot? Planescape torment got more than that, and that's a game, it's partially visual

>>9713911
That was meant to say pages. And Planescape is shit.

>>9713916
You'reshit. That game elevated an entire medium.

>>9713919
Planescape is vomit. The writing is shit and the gameplay is sub-VN.

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>>9713243
>Why not just read The Greeks? They have a mountain of lore, and it'll actually improve rather than contribute to the decay of your higher brain functions.

>>9713926
THIS
overrated dreck, the equivalent of Terry Pratchett if he wrote all his books after he got dementia

>>9713543
I've only read Vacuum Diagrams and The Light of Other Days (co-written by Clarke). Vacuum Diagrams was a bit flat but still interested me enough to put some of the Xeelee books into my backlog.

How much pussy did Gene Wolfe get when he was young?

>>9714033
I don't have the picture on me, but some anons have posted a picture of him and his wife on their wedding day. Old Gene Wolfe looks exactly like Pringles Man or Doctor Eggman depending on your preference, but young Gene Wolfe was a ringer for Michael Imperioli (Kristoffuh from The Sopranos). Don't know whether you'd consider that handsome or not. His early life seems to have gone school -> college -> war -> college again -> pure faithful Catholic marriage.

Maybe he fucked a mountain of South Korean prostitutes or something?

Please recommend prolific SF/F writers who have their complete works on Kindle i.e. H.G. Wells and Robert E. Howard

Free or not.

>>9714087
>Maybe he fucked a mountain of South Korean prostitutes or something?
Charlie's nubile daughters.

>>9714153
>paying for ebooks

>>9713608
>>9713210
If I have borges and wolfe in my top 3, what would complete my trinity?

>>9714167
I should have specified I don't want any meme answers.

>>9714172
Raphael Aloysious Lafferty, The final boss of short fiction. Gene Wolfe also payed direct tribute to him in his story 'Has Anybody Seen Junie Moon?'

>>9714176
Where do you think we are?

What is THE most anime sci-fi and/or fantasy book you've read, /sffg/? Hit me with your best shot.

>>9714181
/r/books

Anyone here read a translation of Les Miserables? How is it? (The translation)

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>>9714033
10% of modern Koreans are his direct descendents

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well here are my thoughts

largely positive, Palmer really keeps the momentum going from book 1. loved the character of Perry in all his scenes, and the rest of the ensemble stayed great
Palmer really has an ability to distract you from the more fantastical elements with politics and intrigue, to the point where I'd completely forgotten about the resurrection potion
The slow reveal of the Mardi's past and the greater overarching plot was great
As criticisms, the entire ending scene with Bridger becoming the Major felt a little out of the blue, but the implication of Bridger moulding of Mycroft was pretty neat


Overall, yeah man this is good shit. Can't wait for Will to Battle.

>>9714192
A minor part of easily one of my favourite books, but when Kassad breaks the sound barrier kicking the shrike. that was nuts

>>9706008
>What did you last read? What did you think about it?
The Last Angel and Mother of Learning.

The former was pretty good, but it needs a good pass-through by an editor. Liked the depiction of space combat, even if it's just as soft as the rest. I like the Compact's information control and compassionate-evil themes, but too many of the Tribunes are absurdly nasty. Needs more ruling caste characters that aren't wholly unsympathetic. The AI/virtual combat/interaction scenes are pretty weak. The sequel's terrorist-versus-freedom-fighter theme is a bit too blatant.

The latter is great. I'm glad that the last few chapters are going all-in on examining Zorian's change-in-character throughout the work. I'm a bit worried about how much story is actually left. The last two arcs were each 26 chapters left, which would only leave us with seven chapters to wrap everything up, which might cut Zorian's introspection and further development a bit short.

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>>9714177
You have a recc where I should start? 900 grandmothers?

>>9714300
To be perfectly honest with you I once read one chapter of 'Fourth Mansions' and decided that Lafferty was simply to intelligent for me. 900 Grandmothers might be a good start, I don't know. I'll try him again one day when I'm less of a bitch.

>reads malazan for the first time
>consults the internet wiki whenever he doesn't understand something
take this, erikson, you pretentious faggot
anybody else done this while reading this shitty series?

>>9714439
Lmaoing at the brainlet

>>9713919
>That game elevated an entire medium.
Must've been a really shitty medium then.

>>9713504
>I'd been led to expect some kind of steep decline in quality following Book of the New Sun and Urth but it was very good.
Nom Book of the New Sun is good, but with much mediocre in it. Wolfe's best is The Wizard Knight.

of the small amount of it i've read the only sci fi i ever enjoyed was the "three body problem" series... what else do i read?

>>9713919
>A glorified CYOA that is barely a game elevated the entire medium

>>9714499
There's not really much else like it, hence why it's popular
Just read Blindsight

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>>9714256
>shills continuously going HAM despite people telling them to fuck off
>they really want me to read it and make macros about my displeasure of the book
If you don't want me reading that book and using all my powers of autism to go anti-shill, refrain from spreading that woman's pronouns useage.

>>9714594
Holy fuck dude I know there's at least one other anon here who's read it because he gave me a fucking download for the damn thing.
Hate to burst your bumble of self-importance but perhaps your lordship isn't the object of my intent?

>>9713384
>At least on reddit people are likely to respond
So go there if you like it so much, you're not owed the brain droppings of other anons here.

>>9712731
That's reddit in a nutshell.

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>pick up a Conan anthology at my local bookstore
>the dialogue is absolute dogshit
Did I get memed?

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>>9710770
...wow...that was disappointing after blindsight

Is Blindsight any good or is this guy just a tasteless shill?

>>9714873
It is very good, all memeing aside

>>9714861
Agreed.
Same high traffic of excellent ideas, but the writing got a little ugly and some of the characters were just vacant.

Has GRI appeared in one single book or do you have to at best pick 2/3?

>>9714873
Blindsight is unironically one of the best novels of the 21st century. Unfortunately, the sequel is really, really shitty. It's especially frustrating because you can see glimmers of Blindsight's greatness throughout, but the whole is just a mess.

>>9714861
Why he decided to go for the "sequel that retroactively fucks with the original" route is a mystery. Has that ever gone well? The "Siri was killed and replaced by aliens" bit was bad enough, but the reveal that Earth falling into unconsciousness was a result of alien tampering is a massive betrayal of the original's ending.

>>9714922
Well, we don't have anything official yet so my headcanon until the final book comes out is that Siri isn't dead, Rorschach just found some way to piggyback the messages so that it could mind control Moore/turn the Earth into zombies

Do you think there's any way that Rorschach doesn't fuck over everyone and everything?

>>9714439
malazanfags will call you a brainlet because you're too stupid to piece together all that intricate lore that you get from reading all 10k pages of this amazing series.
when in reality, there is no mystery to put together. it's just that you have to 10k shitty pages to get all the exposition that it throws at you

>>9714938
I don't think Blindsight shoud've gotten a sequel to begin with. There were no loose ends, no unresolved plot points, no themes with meat left undigested. Setting Echopraxia in the same universe was fine, but it should have, at most, paid passing mention to Blindsight. It should have focused entirely on the vampire plot preferably finding a way to portray their intelligence in some fashion other than magical killer hypnosis and group telepathy.

>>9714970
>There were no loose ends
Hmm, I think there were some, like what was Rorschach doing with the super jovian and the skimmers to begin with? I'd have to reread it again but I was certain there are some others that I had in my mind when I finished it.

Totally agree with the idea that Echopraxia should've focused on the vampires. They're definitely one of the most interesting aspects of the universe Watts created, and yes, the magical killer hypnosis felt like a MAJOR asspull. The group "telepathy" I was somewhat okay with, but I think Watts wrote it in a poor way; I think it would've been much better if he wrote the entirety of how the vampires escaped, perhaps from Valerie's perspective - observing the people around her, judging their reactions, gauging how many other vampires are in the facility etc. Like what we're told, but we actually see her doing it.

Also RIP Valerie, she just wanted a friend and when she found something that even barely approximated someone who could converse with her on her level it kills her :(

>>9714938
I agree with you, Siri's still alive and will probably rock up in the third one
>>9715033
Valerie a cute but she brought it on herself, the pointless act of asking "can't we be friends lol :)" is the point Portia saw her weakness and allowed Bruks to kill her

I live under the assumption that reading books take a really long time.
Can someone give me good book that's pretty short.

>>9715092
creepypasta wiki

>>9715033
>like what was Rorschach doing with the super jovian and the skimmers to begin with
Not really a loose end. That's like finishing Lord of the Ring's and then complaining that Tolkien never tells us what Sam's old gaffer was up to. It's just not material to the meat of the story.

>>9715092
Lord of Light
Solaris

I feel that this novel is objectively brilliant for several reasons, and personally find it subjectively so as well. Especially speaking as someone who scores in the top 2% or better on every intelligence test, who for better and worse has done unlikely-to-"impossible" things myself, I am terribly grateful to see such a realistic, authentic and relatable character as Kvothe. I've grown out of, or never shared but can understand, lots of his personality traits, but it is such a joy to be able to experience an intelligent character for once, rather than a caricature attempting to be passed off in it's place.
As well as the beauty of these books, the depth, and how they are true on multiple levels, with their myriad of hidden secrets. The ways they reflect the reader and illuminate so many biases and preconceptions, and illustrate different preferences and how so many can not understand or respect others' opinions (even when they believe they do [which is meant generally]). I read these and weep with joy and understanding, and sometimes struggle not to immediately begin again with the first novel after finishing the second.

>>9715092
Ursula k Le Guin's books are all very short.

>>9710796
I'll tell you one thing, I'm partway into the second Traveler's Gate book and if this isn't leading up to Simon killing that annoying prick Alin then I am going to be very disappointed.

>>9714439
Reading the wiki defeats the entire point of reading the series.

>>9715092
I've heard the Blade Runner book is pretty short.

>>9715092
quantum thief books are short

chronicles of amber

>>9715144
the point is not grasping any of the lore until you're five books in, at which point you would have already forgotten most of the stuff from the beginning, so you need to re-read the entire series again?

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so why the fuck do these books move into an Uninspired India?

Am I a faggot for legitimately enjoying the Inheritance series by Paolini?

>>9714861
>that cover quote

yyyyyyyyyyyYYYYYYYYOWZA!

>>9715356
It's okay anon people here enjoy Sanderson, Rothfuss, GRRM, Bakker, and many other hacks.

>>9715146
>Blade Runner book

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>The man in the dinner plate despaired. Another holiday, another visceral congregation of noblemen and noblewomen, pushing meats across his brow like sweat rags and cackling at fool's banter.

>He had been trapped in the fine porcelain for nearly a decade, and his hope flickered with feebleness. His true name was lost to him. The sensations of his body were fleeting memories in a dark past. Had he ever been real, or was he just a mirage so elaborate that it had convinced itself of its authenticity?

>The baron seated before him coughed and spat a chicken bone onto the plate, patting his belly in self-satisfaction. He grinned at the man in the dinner plate.

>No, the prisoner thought. This is hell. I am in hell.

>>9715599
what is wrong with fantasy book covers

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>>9715674
The pleb bait covers always come out first.

If you want a decent cover, you have to wait for later editions.

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After some time away from him, I resumed my reading through Clark Ashton Smith with Xeethra (1934.) In the barren hills of Zothique, a humble young goatherd, Xeethra, discovers an unusually fertile patch of land beside a newly formed cavern. After he witnesses the exotic and magical contents of the cavern, he is transformed by ancient memories of a past life.

This is one of Smith's longer short stories, with a lot to unpack about forbidden knowledge, past lives and ancient memories, as well as the fleeting nature of power and prosperity. The protagonist is a double figure, both a goatherd and a King, who finds disatisfaction in both of his stations. Smith contrasts the language of dilapidation with prosperity and the exotic in something in a quasi-parable. Definitely among the better of his stories, 4/5.

Is it true that Moorcock disliked Tolkien because he thought his writings were politically conservative?

>>9715721
I wouldn't be surprised. A Frenchman will take a bad dragon to the hilt to prove he how progressive and antithetical to America he is.

>>9715851
Fuck idk why I thought Moorcock was French. Please disregard that post and no bully.

>>9715721
IIRC Moorcock hated Tolkien's idealization of the common man (and the aristocracy for that matter).

>>9715721
>Moorcock's works are noted for their political nature and content. In one interview, Moorcock states, "I am an anarchist and a pragmatist. My moral/philosophical position is that of an anarchist." Further, in describing how his writing relates to his political philosophy, Moorcock says, "My books frequently deal with aristocratic heroes, gods and so forth. All of them end on a note which often states quite boldly that one should serve neither gods nor masters but become one's own master."
Yes.

>>9715877
>Moorcock hated
I know we're used to discussing dead white men here but Moorcock is still only a white man. No doubt he still dislikes Tolkien's work.

>>9715237
Because Kali demanded it.

>>9715576
>Sanderson, Rothfuss, GRRM, Bakker is on the same shit cesspool level that Paolini occupies
Wow. Just wow.

>>9715683
i like how the blurbs come from less and less prestigious places

>>9715901
Paolini is better than Rothfuss. He wrote a generic fantasy story when he was 16 while Rothfuss writes novels where his self insert is so good at sex that he mind breaks a succubus. Sanderson only had his "worldbuilding" which isn't really that well done. Other than that his novels are the same shit as every other fantasy novel. GRRM can't be bothered to finish his series while Paolini managed to finish his. Bakker is better than Paolini but he's still a hack

>>9715913
>Rothfuss writes novels where his self insert is so good at sex that he mind breaks a succubus

haha what the fuck

tell me more

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Count Colonel Janus bet Vhalnich Mieran is my austismbando!

>>9715913
>He wrote a generic fantasy story when he was 16
*19
And he couldn't even get it published and had to self-publish using his parent's vanity press and then spent a year promoting his self-published novel at any venue he could buy his way into until he eventually met somebody who could introduce him to a real publisher, who then required him to rewrite it before they could publish.

And the end result was STILL completely derivative garbage only a 13 year old would find interesting.

The only thing Paolini has going for him is he knows how to market himself which is a real skill that is valuable to authors and he is living proof you don't need an iota of talent to get published if you have the tenacity to sell yourself no matter what.

>>9715356
Yes.

>>9715913
>He wrote a generic fantasy story when he was 16
How does this myth keep getting repeated? Are his fans literally retarded?
>Paolini born in 1983
>Eragon first published in 2002 by Paolini International LLC (gee I wonder how he managed that?)
>Eragon second edition published by Knopf Books in 2003, shortly before his 20th birthday

>>9715913
A) Paolini wrote and published his books as an adult
B) he was only published because his parents owned a press and gave him exposure to meet actual industry people
C) no shit he finished his books, he stole pretty much every idea in them it's not hard to write when you barely have to think of anything in the story

>>9715924
>Kvothe a virgin meets a Fae that is known for kidnapping men and fucking them to death
>It turns out he's so good at sex that he ends up mind breaking her

>>9715941
exactly Paolini at least has something going for him unlike the other hacks

>>9714919
Bakker

>>9715988
What?
That's not what happens at all.
He tricks her by promising to write a song about her then saying he has nothing to compare her to unless she lets him go
The whole thing is still cringeworthy as fuck

>>9715924
also the hero is a kid and the succubus probably too
the absolute pedo man

>>9715721
Yes. He's a faggot like that.
>HE DOESN'T BELIEVE THE SAME POLITICS I DO SO HIS WORK IS TERRIBLE
Leftists are scum.

>>9715913
>Bakker is better than Paolini but he's still a hack
a man of quality and taste

>>9713812
EPUB or get the fuck out.

TUC epub when! I want to see rape aliens and dick girls! I WANT TO SEE KELLHUS BECOME THE NO GOD!.

>grace of kings

what am I in for?

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>feelio when you're the only person on /lit/ reading Xeelee: Vengeance

>>9715356
Depends on whether or not you were 10 years old at the time.

>>9716274
Anybody else find the song-writing more embarrassing than the sex stuff? Kvothe is supposed to be a god of music and songwriting but Kvothefuss got cocky and actually wrote these 11/10 better than Kris Kristofferson lyrics down.

Still! Sit! For though you listen long
Long would you wait without the hope of song
So sweet as this. As Illien himself set down
An age ago. Master work of a master’s life
Of Savien, and Aloine the woman he would take to wife.

Anybody else moved to tears? I wouldn't be surprised of Rothfuss has never actually heard a song before.

>>9716668
I hope you know how to remove fonts from pirated/overdrive books because those fonts are unreadable.

>>9716736
>not converting to pdf in a way that removes all fonts anyway

>>9714861
>>9714911
>>9714922
>>9714938
>>9714970
>>9715033
>>9715087
ITT: 16 year olds can't understand the pure brilliance of Echopraxia. The one thing I will agree on is that the prose needed some tidying up.

>>9716697
desu I was most embarrassed by the fact that I was reading that garbage

>>9712328
so how much black alien semen will i read about?

>>9715877
That's what he hated at first. Later he hated the fact that he would never reach Tolkien's level as an author.

>>9716697
irrelevant but relevant
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pISzxdEgDCU

>>9716681
Ive been looking at Baxters xeelee stuff for a while now how /comfy/ is it?

>>9716783

some

>>9712945
Ana is reunied with Fazil
The human race doesn't go extinct
Scorpio lives for thousands of years instead of dying within a decade of the end of Absolution Gap

>>9716853
Ring is dank, can't speak for the rest of it. I have 2 other Baxter books that I'll get to at some point but they aren't Xeelee.

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>>9716853
I like it a whole lot. Start with Vacuum Diagrams and see if you enjoy it.
>you will never fuck Spinner-of-Rope

>>9716935
>reading Ring first
ALL THE QUESTION MARKS

>>9715685
>let me repost someone's else post

>>9715913
You are so reddit that I want to commit sudoku on your person myself.

I just read White Luck Warrior. Damn, that really was the slog of slogs. Reading it I mean. Damn whoever brought my attention to all the cucking and penis monsters, now all I can remember is endless descriptions of monstercock and cuck scenes. Is there no one who remains uncucked? Will the cuckening spare no man, woman, or child?

I'm beginning to think this series might have more rape than the sword of truth! And that had the great Freddy Rapeger and his army of raping rapists, who rapes the entire world to sleep each night and rapes them awake in the morning!

Poison seeps through my mind, in every story I'll ever read in the rest of my life, upon the intrudution of some new foe the dread echo of Bakker will call out from within me "But how big is it's penis?"
I DON'T WANT TO KNOW BAKKER! STOP TELLING ME HOW BIG THAT DRAGON'S COCK IS!

Bibliotik has opened up invites for Redacted.ch elite user or higher/3 months if anyone is interested.

Requires overdrive or a service similar to overdrive (like academic ebook services, for example.)

What was that openly-accesible website that you could torrent books from mentioned a few threads ago?

Somebody tried to download a terry pratchett book I recall and he was directed there

>>9717626
is it libgen? why do you need to ask this? learn to archive newfaggot

>>9717671
Why would you even bother replying to that idiot? Just ignore them or tell them to lurk more.

>>9717671
>>9717677

enjoy your dead general snob bois

>>9716772
It had a lot more depth than BS, for better or worse.
I also think that there's a lot which can be said when you thematically contrast the two, as well as their protagonists.
Given Watts autistic levels of planning, I can only hope this pays off for pure Genius with Omnipience

>>9717818
Sequel never.

Any other faptasy similar to Kushiels?

>>9717993
Yes fanfiction.net

>THORN needs an ending written (the ending is outlined in depth, just not yet written) and some targeted rewrites in three or four specific areas, based on vexing but extremely astute criticism from my agent, my genius wife, and a trusted friend. This is my primary job for December.

Is Lynch alright?

wtf is that noise
oh wait its a new thread
>>9718098
>>9718098
>>9718098
>>9718098

>>9718028
That does not narrow anything down. And most popular settings there are shit and/or not fantasy by default.

>>9717728
>>9717626
>if you don't treat me right, like they do on reddit, your general will die
Good. Don't want your fucking reddite ass anyways. kys

>>9717156
>ALL THE QUESTION MARKS
I saw it at Barnes & Noble and picked it up.